Latest Europe Headlines
All the headlines from our Europe Topic Page, ordered by recency.
OECD Sees Euro Zone Crisis Threatening Global Economic Recovery
May 22 2012 // The United States and Japan are leading a fragile economic recovery among developed countries that could yet be blown off course if the euro zone fails to contain its flaring growth crisis, the OECD said on Tuesday. In its...
Tackling Euro Zone Crisis is Top Priority for G8 Leaders
May 18 2012 // Leaders of major industrial economies meet this weekend to try to tackle a full-blown crisis in Europe where fears are growing that Greece could leave the euro zone bloc, threatening the future of the common...
PERILS Q1 Report on European Windstorms Shows ‘Very Active Season’
May 17 2012 // PERILS, the Swiss-based insurance data provider, reports that “in contrast to an unusually quiet European windstorm season in 2010/11, the 2011/12 season was very active.” PERILS said it had “investigated...
SaveOurSeafarers Organization Lauds EU Air Strike on Somali Pirate Bases
May 17 2012 // SaveOurSeafarers, the organization that supports anti-piracy measures and aids the crews who are taken by pirates, has expressed its approval of the air strikes carried out by the naval forces of the European Union on...
Data Shows Iran Petro-Chemical Exports Plunge Due to EU Insurance Sanctions
May 17 2012 // Iranian petrochemical exports have plunged nearly 90 percent in the last two weeks as most maritime firms, including those in Iran, cannot find insurance to transport the cargo due to EU sanctions, according to traders and...
EU Naval Forces Carry Out First Strikes on Somali Pirate Bases
May 16 2012 // The European Union’s naval force off the Somali coastline on Tuesday carried out its first air strikes against pirate targets on shore, officials said. Maritime aircraft and attack helicopters took part in the...
Maybe Europe Should Abandon the Euro Says Canada’s Finance Minister
May 15 2012 // If European countries are not prepared to bail out fellow euro zone members, maybe they should just abandon the whole concept of a common currency, Canadian Finance Minister Jim Flaherty said on Monday in some of his most...
European Commission Approves ING Restructuring; Opens New Probe
May 14 2012 // The European Commission on Friday approved a restructuring plan for Dutch bank and insurer ING made during the financial crisis as compatible with the European Union’s internal market, but also opened an...
Refueling by EU Shippers May Violate Iran Sanctions
May 11 2012 // European ship owners could violate impending EU sanctions against Iran without even knowing it every time they set sail, leaving them vulnerable to being blacklisted, the managing director of leading industry group...
UK Seeking Delay to EU’s Iran Ship Insurance Ban
May 9 2012 // The UK is seeking to persuade fellow European Union members to postpone by up to six months a ban on providing insurance for tankers carrying Iranian oil, arguing that it could lead to a damaging spike in oil prices,...
UK’s FSA Fines Mitsui Sumitomo Insurance (Europe) $5.4 Million; Bans Exec
May 9 2012 // The UK’s Financial Services Authority (FSA) announced that it has fined Mitsui Sumitomo Insurance Company (Europe) Ltd (MSIEu) £3.345 million [$5.4 million] “for serious corporate governance failings, and...
EU Countries ‘Dithering’ over Climate Change Fund
May 7 2012 // EU nations are dithering over how to fill a multi-billion-euro fund to help tackle climate change, just as the region’s executive body hosts talks with countries likely to bear the brunt of extreme weather. The...
Swiss Re in New $400 Million Nat Cat Bond for Europe, U.S. Wind Risks
May 7 2012 // Swiss Re Ltd. Announced that it has secured $400 million in natural catastrophe coverage through a newly-formed issuer Mythen Ltd., which it described as a “flexible program that allows Swiss Re to cede wind risks in...
Court Bans Microsoft’s Xbox 360, Windows 7 from German Market
May 3 2012 // A court in Mannheim, Germany ruled on Wednesday that Microsoft infringed Motorola Mobility’s patents and ordered Microsoft to remove its Xbox 360 gaming consoles and Windows 7 operating system software from the...
Reuters Columnist James Saft on Europe’s Credit Crunch; Bank Capital
May 2 2012 // Europe looks to be entering a credit crunch, with loans harder to get and those that are made coming on tougher terms. Strikingly, banks are being tight despite falling demand for credit, pointing to a nasty interaction...
Best Affirms Ratings Samsung Fire & Marine (Europe) Ratings
Apr 30 2012 // A.M. Best Europe – Rating Services Limited has affirmed the financial strength rating of ‘A’ (Excellent) and issuer credit rating of “a” of UK-based Samsung Fire & Marine Insurance Company of...
Lloyd’s Register Withdraws from Iran Due to Sanctions
Apr 26 2012 // Maritime risk management firm Lloyd’s Register has shut its operations in Iran and can no longer vouch for the safety of the OPEC member’s fleet due to Western sanctions, the head of the company told...
U.S. Tells Industry to Further Test Safety of Nanotechnolgy Products
Apr 23 2012 // U.S. health regulators said consumer products that use nanotechnology may have unknown effects on the human body, and advised food and cosmetic companies to further study the safety of these tiny particles. The U.S. Food...
Is Marine Insurance the Stranglehold on Iran?
Apr 18 2012 // Marine insurance, or lack of it, may yet turn out to be the most effective sanction used by Western nations in 17 years of tightening the screws on Iran’s nuclear program. A European Union oil embargo on Iran, set to...
Japanese Insurers to Limit Iran Oil Voyages in Mideast Gulf – Sources
Apr 13 2012 // Japanese insurers are warning ship owners that they will only cover one tanker at a time carrying Iranian crude oil through the Middle East Gulf due to tightening Western sanctions against OPEC’s second biggest...
